Checkmate
by HopeGrace1290
Summary: A game of chess with a bosom friend proves to be particularly motivating. One-shot.


"Checkmate!"

Kudo Yusaku lounged back in the chair, hands cushioning behind his head and mouth curved into a relaxed grin.

"Mou… Not again?" Kudo Shinichi grumbled, staring at the chess board between them with such resentment it was as if the game itself had personally wronged him.

Yusaku gave a conspicuous yawn. "Seriously, can't you be more of a challenge? This time the game barely lasted 5 minutes."

Shinichi shot daggers at him with his keen cerulean eyes. It was enough that he had never, ever prevailed in a game of chess with the mystery novelist without needing the latter to rub his defeat in. Yusaku beamed infuriatingly wider, determined to annoy the guts out of his only son.

"Ah, until you get better, I'm leaving," he remarked, pushing the chair away and getting up. He stretched his appendages and left Beika Park, leaving a frustrated Shinichi scrutinising the chess board in aggravation.

If it was only a game of chess, Shinichi would have accepted defeat gracefully. Like he knew very well that he would never surpass his father in a singing competition – or anyone else for that matter. It did not bother him in the slightest, except when Suzuki Sonoko decided to tease him to no end. But it went deeper than that. Much, much deeper.

He yearned, as in YEARNED, to surpass his father in his deduction prowess.

That was his eminent aspiration in life, something up till now he had not managed to achieve. It was reflected in this simple game of chess – a game which required the participants to utilise their reasoning skills and predict their opponents' next move. A game of brains and logic.

And as proven by it, he was hardly on par with his father.

It did not matter that he had beaten every other opponent he had ever played against, as long as he did not overcome his father, he was not good enough.

The very thought sent him raking his hand through his silky dark hair in exasperation.

"Mind if I sit down?"

Shinichi jolted up in surprise. In his intense hassle, he did not even notice that someone was standing beside him. At even the first glimpse Shinichi's innate curiosity was piqued. The person was nondescript – deliberately, Shinichi inferred – with a baseball cap worn low, screening most of his features from view. His clothes were mundane, an old scuffed pair of jeans and a commonplace T-shirt. Something most people would not give a second glance to.

Which interested Shinichi all the more.

"Dozo," Shinichi replied, inspecting his countenance assiduously for better identification. The person was meticulous, however, not letting the sunshine to fall on any part of his face. In fact, he had scrupulously chosen a spot shaded by a large tree.

Silence dawned on them, each waiting for the other to make the first move. Ultimately, the stranger broke the stillness.

"Care for a game of chess?" he inquired, a hand indicating the chess board suavely. Shinichi observed that his skin was smooth, not very tanned and not pale either. About teenage, he assumed.

"Sure. Black or white?" Shinichi responded.

The stranger smirked. "Black."

Shinichi was irritated. It was apparent that by taking the darker colour, the stranger was allowing him an advantage by letting him go first as white – which, Shinichi presumed, was the stranger's way of saying he was much better than Shinichi.

Fine. He would just have to prove his aptitude to the stranger. He had, after all, conquered everyone he had ever competed against with the sole exclusion of his father.

Deftly, he moved a chess piece up, feeling very sure of himself.

The stranger moved a piece of his own serenely. His placidity was starting to get to Shinichi.

Irritated, he moved another piece.

The stranger did the same.

Five minutes later, Shinichi found his king cornered. As in nowhere else to move. To say he was shocked was a major understatement.

"Saa, what's your next move?" the stranger questioned, barely hiding the gratification in his voice. Shinichi grimaced.

"Choto matte kudasai," he answered unperturbedly, careful to keep a poker face on.

Another five minutes passed, and Shinichi found a poker face increasingly difficult to keep. He made a mental note to solicit Haibara Ai on how to keep an unruffled façade on twenty-four hours a day. The stranger lifted his head marginally, and Shinichi perceived a smug grin above a delicate chin. The chin seemed inordinately familiar, like a chin he saw every day…

"Patience and composure are the keys to victory. Take a deep breath and be calm. Analyse and study ever aspect vigilantly. Be a detective," the stranger commented.

Shinichi was thunderstruck. Here he was, the renowned and admired high school detective, the saviour of the Japanese force, and this stranger was coaching him on how to be a detective?

How absurd!

"And also, complacency comes before a fall," the stranger continued, reading his mind completely. He glowered.

_Calm down, calm down, Kudo Shinichi. You can't lose to him._

He shut his eyes, inhaled profoundly before exhaling again. Clearing his mind of everything else, sapphires roamed over the chess board pensively, evaluating every facet possible.

_That's it! Over there!_

In paramount delight, Shinichi reached out and move a chess piece, peeking up triumphantly to examine his opponent's expression. The smug did not waver, however; instead, it widened.

"Not bad, but the game is far from over yet."

Shinichi sent him a simper akin to his. "You're right. There is so much more I can do."

"Is that so?" the stranger remarked. "Then how about this?" He moved a chess piece, pinning Shinichi's king in another tight spot.

"Here," Shinichi retorted, moving his chess piece adroitly.

The stranger nodded his head approvingly. That way, they resumed their match, advancing on each other until-

"I lose," the stranger said, clapping his hands appreciatively.

"It was a good game," Shinichi commented.

"That's true. Well, I should be leaving now. My purpose here is accomplished."

"Eh?"

"Continue like this, and one day you'll outshine your otousan, tantei-kun," the stranger articulated smoothly and stood up, taking long even strides. Shinichi gazed after him.

"Arigatou, Kaitou Kid," Shinichi called out without the the slightest hint of being surprised. The stranger turned around, a raised eyebrow could clearly be seen now on a striking face identical to Shinichi's as the sunlight danced playfully on his handsome features.

"You knew?"

"Mochiron," Shinichi responded. "I see that chin every day in the mirror."

"And... You're not stopping me?"

Shinichi shrugged. "Think of it as a thank you."

Kid smirked. "We'll meet again, tantei-kun."

In a blast of smoke, Kid disappeared, and a white shadow materialised in the brilliant blue sky. Navy depths followed him keenly.

"Yes, we will."

* * *

***points to self* Me not that good in chess either. ^^;**

* * *


End file.
